While the feelings that many have around the league about the Warriors' dominance are legitimate, they cannot keep that team together for many more years. They just can't. Cousins finds himself in a unique position as an Unrestricted free agent after this season. He can try to form a super team with other NBA stars or he can pursue the money. It's unclear what Cousins will do, but I feel like he wants to win. Looking at New Orleans' roster will do a lot of things to you, but it will not make you think that they can win. Aside from Davis, they have Solomon Hill making 12 million a year until 2020, Omer Asik making 11 million a year until 2020, E'Twaun Moore making 8 million a year until 2020, and Jrue Holiday just getting a huge extension for the next 5 seasons at 25 million or more a year. The only shot that the Pelicans have to get good in the next few years is to hit an absolute home run on draft picks and that is not great news for a team that has not drafted well. Looking at that roster you have to think that there is no way that Cousins re-signs with them.
If you are the Pelicans, what can you do? Do you wait to see if something amazing happens and your team just clicks in a way that you start winning and Cousins wants to stay or do you realize that you might lose him for nothing and start shopping him? If I am the Pelicans I am shopping Cousins immediately. The only problem you have with shopping Cousins is that there is no telling what his market value is. He has a bad rap from his time with the Kings and he can leave in a year because his contract is up. New Orleans has to try and trade him immediately for whatever they can get. Unfortunately, I think that New Orleans just like Washington is a year or two away from Anthony Davis telling them that he wants out although he has quite a few more years on his deal. If you are New Orleans, why not offer Cousins to a team in the East that will give you a solid player in return in addition to a draft pick. There is no point in waiting it out with Cousins, there is no way that he re-signs in New Orleans and it is only a matter of time before Davis will be gone as well.